Cardinals WR Larry Fitzgerald played through his sprained MCL on Sunday against the Lions.  Although he didn't wear a knee brace, he looked a bit hobbled.  He didn't display his usual explosiveness, catching 4 balls for just 36 yards.  But he did salvage his fantasy day with an impressive 1-yard TD grab, displaying great concentration to grab the ball in the end zone after it was tipped up in the air by a defender.  Fitzgerald should be healthier next Sunday and would be impossible to bench against the Rams.

Cardinals WR Larry Fitzgerald missed a couple series in last night's game against the 49ers with a right knee injury.  He had it rolled up on him by S Dashon Goldson after laying out for a deep ball.  The team is calling it a knee sprain, and Fitz will undergo an MRI today.  The fact that he returned to the game last night makes us think it's nothing serious.  We'll update his status later today.

The MRI on Cardinals WR Larry Fitzgerald's right knee revealed only a bone contusion and a minor sprain.  ESPN's Adam Schefter reports that Fitzgerald was walking on Tuesday without a limp.  It sounds like he'll be ready to play by Sunday, but we'll continue to update his status throughout the week.

According to a report from the Arizona Republic, Marcus Fitzgerald (Larry's little brother) tweeted the following:  "Just got off the phone with my brother.  he's happy about the win.  But PISSED he didn't get the ball thrown 2 him much!"  Marcus apparently also referred to Warner as "old ass man" in other tweets.  Nice touch, Marcus.  It's understandable that Fitz isn't happy with the Cards dink and dunk offense thus far.  Let's see if complaining through his little brother helps matters.        

Larry Fitzgerald took the MVP honors as the NFC beat the AFC 30-21 in the Pro Bowl. He caught 5 passes for 81 yards & 2 TDs. His first score was a 46-yarder from Drew Brees, the second one a 2-yarder from Eli Manning. Fitzgerald was out there almost the entire game and led the NFC with 8 targets. Going back to week 16 in a 7-game stretch through the playoffs, Fitzgerald has caught 12 TDs.

Larry Fitzgerald caught 8 passes for 166 yards & 1 TD to spark the huge 33-13 win over Carolina, and a trip to the NFC title game. Fitz had 151 yards and the TD before halftime as the Cards went up 27-7. OC Todd Haley put in some new pass plays that obviously confused Carolina. He had Fitz running a deep crossing route (usually Anquan Boldin's route) that turned into a 29-yard TD thanks to an incredible run & dive after the catch. At this point Fitzgerald is worth every penny of that huge 4-year, $40 million contract with $30m guaranteed. His hands are the hands by which all other receivers are judged.

Bob Romantic and Scott Bordow of the Arizona East Valley Tribune both pick Philly to win, 27-23 and 20-17 respectively. "As much as the Cards would like to forget the 48-20 drubbing at the hands of the Eagles on Thanksgiving night, I just can't," writes Romantic. "I don't think the Eagles will be four touchdowns better again in Sunday's NFC title game - there were too many factors going against the Cards in that game - but I still think they're the better team."  Wow, where's the homer love?  Note: Anquan Boldin (hamstring) is listed as questionable. He's been talking to the media more this week, which is usually a sign that a player feels better.

Cardinals WR Larry Fitzgerald caught 9 passes for 152 yards & 3 TDs in the 32-25 win over Philly. Fitzgerald, a huge star at University of Pittsburgh, will face the Pittsburgh Steelers in SB XLIII.  In the 2008 postseason Fitz has 23 receptions for a NFL playoff record 419 receiving yards and 5 TDs. The old record was 409 by Jerry Rice in 1988.  Fitz still has another game to play too. He also has three consecutive postseason 100-yard games, tying Rice, Tom Fears, and Randy Moss for the NFL record. He's been completely dominant. Words can't describe it. Fitzgerald has also justified that massive 4-year, $40 million contract ($30m guaranteed) that had other NFL owners growling because Arizona set the bar so ridiculously high.

Cardinals WR Larry Fitzgerald was held to 2 catches for 23 yards in the first 54 minutes at New England in week 16. Then he caught a perfectly-thrown ball from Matt Leinart down the sideline and scooted 78 yards for the score. Fitz fended off the faster DB Ellis Hobbs with an iron stiff-arm and dove into the end zone. He's the #1 fantasy WR since 2004 with at least 1 TD and/or 80 yards in 53 of 75 games. Unreal. Fitzgerald is the Peyton Manning of WRs. Cash money. Cards HC Ken Whisenhunt says he'll play the starters to beat Seattle in Week 17's meaningless game. We still wouldn't count on seeing Fitzgerald in the 2nd half.

The full-text rankings are posted under the MVP Weekly Report tab.

SI's Don Banks blasted the 7-5 division-leading Arizona Cardinals today, calling them "first-place frauds" and surely landing a spot on the Cards' locker-room bulletin board. "They're going to win the weak NFC West, go 9-7 or so, and make the playoffs for the first time in 10 years. But that's more of a reflection on the sorry state of their division than anything else," adds Banks. "Arizona (7-5) has lost to nearly every quality team it has faced: at Washington, at the Jets, at Carolina, home against the Giants, and most recently, at the up-and-down Eagles...  and then there was the way the Cardinals lost to the Eagles. We know Arizona can move the ball, but its defense gave up 437 yards to an Eagles offense that just looked inept at Cincinnati and at Baltimore the previous two weeks."

Larry Fitzgerald is listed as "limited" Wednesday with a thumb injury. The funny thing is, the Cardinals did not practice today -- they don't play until Monday night, so today was their "Tuesday day off."  He's fine.

Cardinals WR Larry Fitzgerald (thumb) was limited Thursday. We're sure it's nothing but will check back tomorrow to be safe.

Cards WR Larry Fitzgerald (thumb) is not listed on the Friday injury report.

We're hearing that Cardinals WR Larry Fitzgerald's stalled contract talks were the primary reason they could not sign G Alan Faneca. Arizona wanted to sign Faneca badly (he went with the Jets) but were handcuffed by Fitzgerald's massive $16 million cap charge. They've been desperately trying to rework Fitzgerald's deal with new money to lower his 2008 cap hit - but didn't get it done quick enough. The Cardinals have no one to blame but themselves. They built the massive cash escalators into Fitzgerald's rookie deal, then threw him a zillion passes so he'd reach every one of them. Now their free-agency plans have been derailed by Fitzgerald's salary, and he has no obligation to accept less money. He holds all the Cards, pardon the pun.

Just reported by the Arizona Republic, WR Larry Fitzgerald and the Cardinals have agreed to a new 4-year, $40 million deal with $30m of it guaranteed. It's structured to pay out $33m spread over the next 3 years. Remember, Fitzgerald was scheduled to make $32 million over the next *2* seasons, hence the cripplling 2008 cap charge of $16m they had to whittle down. They now have the extra cap room they were seeking -- but it's too late to land their prize free agent, G Alan Faneca, who went to the Jets instead. OL coach Russ Grimm coached Faneca in Pittsburgh and wanted him oh-so-badly in Arizona, so he'll probably have a word with Fitz about the delayed negotiations.  The All-Pro WR could have been a little more accomodating... but in the end, it's not Fitz's fault he had such a gaudy rookie deal with cap-lethal escalators. 

One of the more underreported stories brewing this offseason is Larry Fitzgerald.  Because of an incentive-laden rookie contract's escalators, the Cardinals owe him $14.592 million this coming season and $17.355 million the next. Obviously they knew he was good - they drafted him 3rd overall - but didn't think he'd have two 100-catch/10-TD seasons under his belt at this point. Trying to rework his deal will be difficult. The Sporting News reports: "If the guaranteed money [in a new offer] is less than $31.947 million, the sum of the salaries he is owed, the Cardinals shouldn't bother."  To make matters worse, Fitzgerald was interviewed in Super Bowl week and said the Philadelphia Eagles were "one of like four teams" he'd be interested in playing for.  Bottom line: Arizona can cut him, trade him, or resign him.  One of these 3 things has to happen because they can't pay him what he's currently owed.

Larry Fitzgerald carries a brutal $16.5 million cap charge so his contract has to be redone quickly. "It could be difficult for the penny-squeezing Cards to work out a deal with Fitzgerald, unless he's willing to give up his enormous leverage in the hopes of helping the organization field a competitive team around him," reports ProFootballTalk.  They're right.  Fitzgerald holds all the cards. They can cut him, trade him or resign him - but one of these 3 things absolutely has to happen.  Forget all the Chad Johnson trade rumors for now, it's Fitzgerald that could be shipped off in a blockbuster swap.

The Cardinals are feverishly trying to get Larry Fitzgerald's $16 million cap hit slashed, having just offered him a new 4-year deal with some $25 million guaranteed.  Fitzgerald's rookie contract included some huge escalators for lofty numbers and he's achieved every one of them - hence, a whopping $14.6 million salary in 2008.  Arizona has to figure something out quick.  If Fitzgerald accepts this new offer, or something similar, his cap hit will be reduced by some $10 million. And the team will have almost $20 million to spend.  If he doesn't accept (make no mistake, he holds all the cards) then Arizona's going to have a hard time spending on big free agents. "The case of not being able to restructure certainly will have some implications on our roster and our opportunities in how we proceed through the off-season," said Cardinals GM Rod Graves last week.  Translation:  "If Larry plays hard ball we might have to trade him. We have other holes to fill."

FoxSports.com's John Czarnecki expects both WR Larry Fitzgerald (groin) and WR Anquan Boldin (toe) to play today against Atlanta.